Vending machine



April 9, 1935. A. E. REIMERS El AL 1,997,079

VENDING MACHINE Filed May 4, 1932 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTORS .7 v Alfred ERezmorS BY mllterlfflwe/zder 37 ATTORNEY April 9 35.

A. E. REIM RS Er AL VENDING NE Filed May 4, 1952 4 Sheet et 2- INVE ORS Walter K. Jill/6121101- April 1935. A. E. REIMERS ET AL 1,997,079

I VENDING MACHINE Filed May 4, 1932 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 &

INVENTORS Alfred E. Rezmem 9 BY Wdlll'KT (I6 I W ATTCSRNEY April 9, 1935. A. E. REIMERS El AL VENDING MACHINE I Filed May 4, 1932 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 ATTORNEY Patented Apr. 9, 1935 i V UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE VENDING MACHINE ware Application May 4, 1932, Serial No. 609,300

10 Claims.

- This invention relates to vending machines and our improvements comprehend a. development of the vending machine described in our earlier application, Serial No. 589,822, filed J anuary 30, 1932, for the purpose of imparting certain additional features and functions thereto.

In said earlier application the carriage which elevates the vendible articles is arrested by a brake. which is caused to be applied when the topmost article of a stack upon the carriage engages height limiting fingers, whereupon certain kick-ofif mechanism is operable, through the medium of a pull rod, to deliver the topmost article. But in said earlier application no provision is made to free the height limiting fingers from contact with the upper surface of the topmost article, so that a frictional drag may occur to interfere with delivery of said article, and in some instances, where such article is of a fragile nature, it may suffer injury in its delivery.

Therefore one of the purposes of. this application is to provide means, actuable in the operation of the pull rod, to cause the article riselimiting fingers to be further lifted for the purpose of providing a clearance between said fingers and the topmost article after the brake has arrested the carriage upward movement.

Also our improvements include the provision of a manipulable slide member, and pivotal means intermediate the pull rod and said slide member whereby the full pull rod stroke may be performed with a relatively short stroke of the slide member.

Further, our improvements include the provision of means for holding the slide member for the pull rod locked against the article delivery out-stroke of the pull rod until an interponent, such as a proper coin or its equivalent isdisplaceably included in certain lock release mechanism that is also provided with respect to said slide member, said lock release mechanism being operable during the initial movement of the slide member.

A still further feature of the present applica tion consists in a modified guide means for the weights employed in elevating the carriage, together with novel means for suspending the weights while the carriage is being reloaded with vendible articles.

In the modification of our invention, herein referred to, we may employ a clock spring having an escapement and gear train as means for raising the article supporting carriage, instead of or auxiliary to the use of weights for such pur-.

pose, thereby also dispensing with the use, of the governor. I

Other features and advantages of our invention will hereinafter appear.

In the drawings:

Figure l is a side elevation of a vending machine, constituting a complete unit, of'which onev or more may be included in a suitable cabinet.

Fig. 2 is an opposite side view of the slide mechanism, for co-operation with the pull rod, also having the lock means, and the lock release means, this view showing the lock in its engaged position.

Fig. 3 is a similar view, but showing the vlock as released. 15

Fig. 4 is a section on the line 44 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a section on the line 5-5 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 6 is a schematic view showing the brake bar in its operated position in which it has been caused to lift the article stack arresting fingers k in creating a clearance between said fingers and the topmost article. i

Fig. 7 is a similar view showing the brake bar in its pre-operation position.

Fig. 8 is a section on the line 8-8 of Fig. 1. 25

Fig. 9 is a plan View of a modified forml of power means for raising the carriage.

Fig. 10 is a section on the line llllll of Fig. 9.

Fig. 11 is a front view, with a portion of the frame broken away.

v Fig. 12 is an enlarged, detail view of the escapement means.

In said views let I indicate the carriage supporting a stack A of vendible articles, Zthe rack bar along which said carriage travels, 3 the brake bar, pivotally connected to links 4 respectively at its upper and lower ends, 5 the bracket in the form of a channel member, carried by the brake bar at its upper end, said member carrying the fingers 6 which are opposed to the stack of articles on the carriage and serve to arrest the carriage when the topmost article comes in contact therewith, thereby shifting the brake bar to cause the brake to be applied and at the same time raising the brake bar a certain degree until the brake stops the carriage movement, I the pull rod, and 8 the kick-ofi device which travels along guide bar 9; these parts corresponding with like parts disclosed in our said application Serial No. 589,822. Y

In our said earlier application weights which overbalance the carriage are provided with certain means for holding them suspended while free from said carriage in the loading operation of the latter, but in the present application difsuspended at any desired position by engagement 7 of the chain in a fixed spur l8, sothat said weights may be suspended whilst the carriage is being loaded.

Through the medium of our present improvements we intend to provide means enabling the brake rod 3, after it has been shifted in the rising contact of the stack of articles with the fingers 6, whereby said brake bar has caused the brake to be applied for arresting the travel of the carriage, to be given a further lift, which is also communicated to fingers 6, so as to create a clearance between the topmost article of the stack and said fingers, thus enabling said topmost article to be withdrawn, for delivery, without subjectingjsaid article to such frictional resistance as it would suffer if it were in contact with said fingers. the brake bar and fingers in the initial part of the movement of the article delivery means by mechanism which will now be described:

To the main frame l9, forwardly thereof, there is attached, atone side, a supplemental frame 20, which has horizontal guideways 2| in which a member 22 is slidable, said member having the upper andlower, spaced bars 23, 24, that provide bearing surfaces for member 22 when sliding forwardly. Also member 22 has a forwardly projecting handle 25, which may be termed the article delivery handle.

The brake bar 3 is shown as provided, near its lower end, with a bracket 26, to which one end of a rod 21 is affixed, the upper end of said rod being connected to a lever 28, that is pivoted at 29 to the frame 20, said lever carrying, at the other side of its pivot, a pivotal roller 30, whose periphery projects above the upper surface of said lever. Normally, in the operation of the machine, that is, when the brake bar is unshifted and the brake is idle, with the carriage rising, (see Fig. 7 the roller 30 lies in'a recess 3| formed in the under surface of member 22, said recess leading by a curved shoulder 32 to the main under surface 33 of member 22, said surface 33 being in a lower plane than recess 3|. Also, when the brake bar has been shifted to the position indicated in Fig. 1, in which position the brake has been applied, the lever 28 has been rocked slightly, causing the roller 3|] to leave contact with surface 3| though still being opposed to shoulder 32; Now, it will be apparent thatas member 22 is drawn forwardly, its first effect will be to further rock the lever 28 as the roller 36 is rolled over shoulder 32 intocontact with surface 33, and in sodoing rod'2'l is caused to further lift the brake bar 3, through the medium of bracket 26, and in this extra lift of the brake bar consequently the bracket 5 is raised and with it the fingers 6 are lifted clear above the arrested position of the topmost article, which is then free to be delivered,

1 as through the medium of pull rod 1 and the kickoff device 8, having article engaging stud 8'.

. In instances where the articles to be delivered are of considerable length obviously the stroke of the pull rod 1 might be of undesirable extent in direct manual operation, and for. the purpose This extra lift is imparted to.

of reducing the manual effort required a link is provided between member 22 and pull rod 1, said link being in the form of a lever 34, having an intermediate, lengthwise slot by which it is.

slidable on a stud 36, fixed to the member 22, the other end of said lever being pivoted, at 31, to the frame 20. By these means the stroke of member 22, performed by pulling on handle 25, is of considerably less extent than the communicated full length delivery stroke of pull rod 1.

It is however undesirable that an article shall be delivered before a releasable interponent, such I as a proper coin, has been inserted in the machine, wherefore we havev provided lock mechanism that prevents the operation of the article delivery mechanism until an interponent has been added to become a part of the lock release means.

The lock mechanism aforesaid comprises a latch 38, pivoted at 39 to the frame 20 and lying x normally in a recess 40 formed in the top of member 22, the nose 4| of said latch being opposed to a shoulder or abutment 42, at one end of recess 49. A clearance represented by a double pointed arrow 43 normally separates the nose 4| from shoulder 42, and member 22 can be drawn 1 forwardly the extent of that clearance, until shoulder 42 comes into contact with nose 4|, which locks member 22 against further withdrawal.

In order to release the lock for the operation ing the vertical position of bar 44. Said bar 44,

at its lower end, is provided with a foot 41, which is to be engaged by; means adapted to lift said bar.

Fixed to the frame '20, in a planebelow and spaced from foot 41, is a. member 48, havinga surface that is inclined upwardly in the withdrawal direction of member 22. An interponent,

as for example a proper coin 50, is to be supported in part upon incline 49in the normal position of member 22, that is, beforeinitial movement of said member has occurred, whereby,

in the withdrawal movement of member 22, while shoulder 42 is travelling toward latchnose 4|, said .interponent, whose diameter exceeds the distance separating foot 41 from the top of incline 49, will, in moving up said incline, exert pressure against said foot, thereby lifting bar 44 and causing latch 38 to be raised above shoulder 42, thus releasing the lock engagement, and permitting the full article withdrawing operation of slide member 22 and pull rod 1.

A proper coin 50, intended for service as aninterponent in the lock release mechanism described, is introduced into the machine through a slot 5|, and passing over a horse shoe magnet 52, located between the spaced plates 53 which form the coin passageway, falls upon the inclined surface 54 of a guide member 55, which is pivoted at 56 to an arm 51 that is pivotally connected, at

58, to the free end. of lever 28, said arm 51 hav in Fig. 2, being that in which member 55 is held with its surface 54 in an attitude that directs the coin into a chute 62, which delivers it upon the inclined surface fit of member 48. When upon surface 49 the coin is supported at its sides between the fixed plates 63, 54, plate 63 being attached to member 22, and plate 64 being secured to plate 63, in spaced relation therewith, the spacing between plates 8-3 and 64 being just sufficient to non-frictionally receive a proper or designated coin, and the plate 54 having a rear end flange 65 which co-acts with incline 49 to position. the coin prior to the forward movement of member Whenthe proper coin or interponent, thus halted, has performed its function of releasing the lock, it will, after passing incline 49, fall toward a coin box (not shown) in the manner indicated in Fig. 3, the coin appearing in dot and dash lines in its descent.

But if a smaller coin or token should be used, it will not be held in operative position on incline 49, and will instead be rejected.

When the lever 28 is in the position shown in Fig. '7, that is prior to the brake applying shift of brake bar 3, the surface 54 of member 55 will be removed from the path of an object falling through slot 55, wherefore, in this condition of the machine, before the carriage has been ar rested in its upward movement, or provided the machine is empty, coins entered through slot 55, will fall inoperatively through the machine and may be delivered into the article receiving trough.

The magnet 52 is so positioned that magnetizable disks will be attracted by its poles and defiected thereby to fall out inoperatively.

For arresting washers and the like we employ a wing shaped member 66, pivoted at 5'? to webs 67 that project from a fixed plate 63, said member 66 having a spur Gil that is slightly pressed against the surface of plate 64 by a spring 70 in the normal position of member 22, said spring being located between the portion H of member 66 and plate 68. But plate 54 has a slot 52, adapted to receive spur 69 in the outward movement of member 22, and, while the spur 89 will glide over a coin that may be held between plates 63, 64, yet if a washer is so held the spur will be spring pressed into its hole and cause ,dislodgement of said washer'before it can have the opportunity to effect the lock release. The rotation of mem ber 66 is limited by means of an adjustable stop 66.

It should be particularly noted that with this apparatus no opportunity occurs for manipulating the article withdrawing means, in the delivery of succeeding articles from the stack with the insertion of a single proper coin, for this reason:-- It is necessary that the brake be applied to arrest the movement of the carriage before the topmost article, which itself becomes a part of the instrumentation for arresting the carriage, can be removed. When said article has been delivered the pull rod and member 22 will be returned as by the gravity action of weight 13. But if the intending manipulator should try, by holding handle 25 from return, and working it to and fro in an attempt to extract another article this attempt will be fruitless, because the surface 33 of member 22 is on roller 3! the brake is held applied, and hence, there is no topmost article that can be engaged by the kick-off device.

In the modification illustrated in Figs. 9 to 12 we have shown spring power means, controlled by an escapement, for urging the carriage upwardly, together with means which coact with the brake operating means for arresting the rise of said carriage.

In said views let 74 indicate a coiled spring having one end fixed as at 15 and its other end secured to a drum it that is loose upon a shaft ll, said shaft being journalled in a frame 18,

which forms a part of thecarriage, the table 19,

ratchet 8i; and pawl 3i.

Fast upon shaft '5? is a pinion 82, that meshes with a gear 33 upon a shaft 84, journalled in frame 38 in parallel relation to shaft Ti, and said shaft also carries a pinion 85, which is in eshed engagement with a rack bar 86, to thereby cause the carriage to raised in the expanding action of spring l and the consequent rotation of pinion 82, gear 83 and shaft 3:2. The pivotal rollers iii, carried by frame portion 13, co-acting with the sides of rack bar 85, serve as anti'friction guides in the travel of the carriage alongthe rack bar.

The shaft ll also carries a gear 88, that is in mesh with a pinion 99, fast on a shaft which is journalled in frame l3, said shaft 98 at one end carryng a brake drum ti, and at its other end carrying an escapement wheel 32, mounted on shaft 38, with which wheel the double toothed pawl 93 co-actssaid pawl being pivoted upon a support i ne escapement means aforesaid are provided to control the travel speed of the carriage, the pawl 93 having a pendulum 95, and be ing provided with a vertical slot 96, by which it is suspended from pivot 55, and in the extent whereof it can be shifted over said pivot,.to release said pawl from wheel 92, when the carriage is being lowered, for which purpose a spring detent 9? in the slot serves to localize the pawl in its shifted position.

The brake bar 98 of this modification, which is operable in the same manner as brake bar 3, is connected at its ends with the frame by linlrs99, although only the lower link appears in Figs. 10 and 11, said brake bar serving in a modified manner to control the means for arresting the travel of the carriage, as will now appear.

A brake arm iiihpivoted at Nil to the frame l8, carries a shoe Hi2 which is adapted to co-act 'with brake drum 9!, said arm lill] also pivotally carrying a roller ith that, the normal position of brake bar 98 (see Fig. 16) with which it is held in contact by a weight 5 ti, carried at the free end of arm Hi6, thereby holds the shoe I62 out of contact with drum 91 .to permit travel of the carriage.

But when the brake bar 98 is shifted upwardly and laterally, as appears in Fig. 11, then the weight I04, which causes roller 163 to follow such lateral movement, will have drawnthe brake shoe against the drum 9i thereby arresting the movement of the gear train and the travel of the carriage.

Variations within the spirit and scope of our invention are equally comprehended by the foregoing disclosure.

We claim:

1. The combination, in a vending machine, having a carriage adapted to support a stack of articles, means for raising said carriage, braking means therefor, and means opposed to the topmost article adapted to apply said braking means when contacted therewith, of means operable to deliver said article, and means actuable by said delivery means to release said opposed means from contact with said article prior to delivery of the latter.

2. The combination, in a vending machine,

' having a carriage adapted to support a stack of articles, means for raising said carriage, braking to further shift said brake bar, whereby said opposed means is released from contact with said article prior to delivery of the latter.

3; The" combination, .in a vending machine, having a carriage adapted to support a stack of articles, means for raising said carriage, braking means therefor, Va shiftable brake bar to operate said braking means, and means opposed to the topmost article adapted when contacted therewith ,to shift said brake bar, of a slidable member operable to deliver said article, a pivotal rock lever actuable by said slidable member in its initial movement, and connecting means between said brake bar and rock lever whereby said rock lever,

in the initial part of the operation of the delivery means, transmits motion through said brake bar to release said opposed means from contact 7 with said article prior to delivery of the latter.

'member operable to deliver said article, said slidable member having a recess formed in its main under surface, a pivotal rock lever, a projecting roller carried thereby and lying normally in said recess, and connecting means between said brake bar and rock lever, whereby said rock lever, in the initial part of the operation of said slidable member, moves said roller from the recess to its main under surface, thereby rocking said lever and causing it to transmit motion through said brake bar to release said opposed means from contact with said article prior to delivery of the latter.

5. The combination, in a vending machine, having a carriage adaptedto support a stack of articles, of a fixed rack, a-frame upon said carriage, a pinion journalled in said frame, said pinion meshing with said rack, a clock springupon said carriage, a gear train to transmit energy from said spring to said pinion, and escapement means to control the operation of said spring,

6. The combination, in a vending machine, having a carriage adapted to support a stack of articles, ofa fixed rack, a frame upon said carriage,

a pinion journalled in said frame, said pinion meshing with said rack, a gear train to transmit energy from said spring to said pinion, escape ment means to control the operation of said spring, a brake drum operable by said gear train, a brake arm having-a shoe to co-act with said drum in arresting the travel of the carriage, and means releasably engaging said brake arm to hold said shoe normally out of contact with said drum.

7. In a vending machine a merchandise storage compartment, an elevator therein, adapted to raise the merchandise, a counterweight adapted to raise the elevator, means for regulating the speed of the elevator, means for stopping the elevator when the merchandise has been raised to the proper position for vending, means for ejecting the merchandise, and independent means for looking the elevator during the operation of said alined with the discharge opening, means for ejecting the containers and means for maintaining the engagement of said friction braking means while the ejecting means are in operation.

9. In a device of the class described, an elevator adapted to carry articles of merchandise, means for operating said elevator, control means for said operating means adapted to be operated by an article on the elevator at a predetermined position of the article for causing the discontinuation of operation of the elevator, ejector means for removing the article from the elevator adapted to maintain the control means in position to render the operating means ineffective during the ejection of the article and to permit said control means to move at the end of the ejectionoperation to render the operating means efiective to operate the elevator for replacing the removed article with another article.

10. The combination, in a vending machine, having a carriage adapted to support a stack of articles, means for raising said carriage, braking means therefor, a shiftable brake-bar to operate said braking means, and means opposed to the topmost article adapted when contacted therewith to shift said brake-bar, of a slidable member operable to deliver said article and means carried by said brake-bar adapted to co-act with said member to elevate said brake-bar and cause it to release said opposed means from contact with said article prior to delivery of the latter.

ALFRED E. REIMERS. WALTER K. TAVENDER. 

